Geeks making the world a bit better.

Our campus help page on installing the VPN on Linux describes a fantastically complicated multistep process that begins with downloading some Cisco tar ball. I've found a much simpler way on Ubuntu using software from the standard repositories.

First install network-manager-vpnc using Synaptic or sudo apt-get install network-manager-vpnc.

Then right click on your network icon in the tray and choose VPN Connections → Configure VPN....

A Network Connections dialog pops up; click Add.

A Choose a Connection Type dialog pops up, with a pull down menu; choose Cisco Compatible VPN and click Create...